Dell dude, Q4 results in cyber-focus

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- Considering the duct-and-cover panic that has Americans everywhere preparing for life as bubble-boy, Dell Computer's virtual peanut gallery sure seems to be having a jolly good time lately.

For Dell-inquents, the week began in anticipation of Thursday's key earnings report but the focus quickly turned to the much-maligned Dell dude ... this time with a Cheech-and-Chong twist.

It turns out the PC-pushing stoner was caught with his hand in the dope jar. And while it's quite possible that he's not the first pseudo-celebrity who's dabbled in the terrorist-funding, teen pregnancy-inducing Satan weed, he definitely got more than his fair share of media and message-board coverage.

Over on Fark.com's fertile grounds, regulars couldn't get enough of the "Dude, you got a cell" and "Dude, you got a dude" banter that littered the boards. A good time was certainly had by all, with ReverendNewp offering up the crown jewel:

"Doesn't he know that pot is a gateway drug?"

But seriously folks, how about Thursday's earnings report and the subsequent stock pop? Well, there was no dearth of commentary on that, either. Check earnings coverage.

GTFlinn over on Yahoo clearly liked what he saw: "By any measure, they blew away all the estimates. Asia and India sales going thru the roof now. Added $1.1 Billion in cash for the quarter. Up big tomorrow without a doubt!"

Right so far, GT -- the stock is up more than a buck after hours. Whether it holds through another night of breaking news is a different story altogether.

Next up, KnowsPicker, who delivered his uncanny impression of a public relations flack: "It's getting harder to believe in corporate America as every day more and more scandal is revealed. Dell
DELL
on the other hand, is a nice example of a company that sells the cheapest computers on the market, still posts good figures and backs up its quality product with good service/support.

"They have positioned themselves to be in all PC segments, much like Microsoft, but they've done it without the shady persona. Their reporting #'s today should help an otherwise bleak economic background and prove that even in admitted soft times proper management can still achieve sound corporate goals."

Of course, short-selling bashers like TheOriginalMDR never go down without a fight. Here's his take on what he called Dell's creative accounting: "They don't do it on purpose ... the problem is that they use Dell PC's. So if you add 1 + 1 on a Dell, you get 3 1/2. It's called Dell-usional math."

Pot, "Dell-usional math," duct tape ... just another day in the life of the Dell faithful in cyberspace.

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